I have a back wisdom tooth that is broken. Shortly after it broke, the pieces began falling off. All I have left now is one small piece in the back. The pulp is disappearing, however, the tooth is super sensitive. Will it eventually fall out by itself or do I HAVE to see a dentist? I don’t have much money at the moment so even though I’m in pain, I want to avoid the dentist, if possible.

James

Dear James,

I am glad you wrote. I feel compassion for what you are going through. To be in so much pain and still not want to see the dentist means you are completely broke. Yes, eventually, your decaying tooth will fall out. That being said, there is a chance that an infection will get into the bone and cause serious problems. The way to avoid that is to have the tooth taken out.

I’m having a hard time grasping the entirety of your situation because I haven’t seen it. I’m not sure what you mean by the pulp disappearing. Because of that, combined with my sympathies for your financial situation, I am going to suggest that unless your jaw starts to swell you should be okay to wait it out. However, if the jaw starts to swell, you have a serious dental emergency on your hands. In that case, you have to see someone and have this dealt with, or else it can become life threatening.

Here is some advice if you want to try and take care of this now. First, I’d call around and see if there is a free dental clinic for emergencies. If not, you could also call around to see if there is a dentist who will allow you to get the treatment you need and then pay it out. I would start by looking for dentists who advertise themselves as affordable dentists in that case.

This blog is brought to you by Tulsa Dentist Dr. Ryan Noah.